Visually impaired persons generally orient themselves with the aid of a white cane and the haptic perception of the collisions of the tip of the white cane with the environment. For this, guidance systems are known from the relevant literature that are capable of providing very suitable guidance for blind persons in train stations, on platforms, or elsewhere, by means of a periodic arrangement of floor elements, for example. These methods are less suitable for people with little experience and having physical handicaps, or, respectively, in a natural, in particular rural, environment. Furthermore, interaction with the environment is compromised by the use of a white cane.
Moreover, rescue workers from organizations such as the fire department, military, etc. are frequently confronted with situations in which it is difficult to orient visually, such as at nighttime or in smoke filled buildings.
With the known devices, the spatial scanning of the environment is left up to the user. If this user is also limited in terms of his mobility, then there are significant sources of danger, which time and again result in harmful accidents. Furthermore, the scanning of the environment with the white cane can only occur sequentially, which can lead to critical situations, particularly in changing environments, this being even in the case of an escalator. Additionally, the edges of carpets, for example, or comparably low, but relevant, obstacles, are often not detected.